Unity in diversity

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• Unity in diversity
• 12-14 August 2009
• Townsville
• Galila Abdelsalam

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The story of IWAQ is worth to be told as it gives
others hope to dream and to be inspired.
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Vision which has become a reality

• In less than 20 years, started by 11 female
  volunteers from diverse backgrounds, becoming one
  of the biggest, successful multicultural
  organizations in QLD.

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Timeline

• 1991 IWAQ established by a group of women
• 1995 IWAQ receives the Grant-In-Aid (GIA) grant
  to employ two Community Workers.
• 1996 Muslim Youth Needs Research completed
• 1996 IWAQ receives the Disability grant
• 1997 Completion of study into the Care needs of
  Older Muslim Adults
• 1998 IWAQ receives the HACC and CACP grants
• 2003 IWAQ successful in Innovative Pilot project

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• 2006 Opening of Salam Respite Cottage
• 2006 EACHD service began
• 2007- Brisbane City Council Healthy Life Style
  Program
• 2008 Police Partnership Project
• 2008 Salaam Arts Project
• 2009- Additional CACPs HACC funding

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Some accomplishments

• Community Settlement Officers
• Research Into The Needs Of Muslim Elderly
• Community Aged Care Packages
• Home And Community Care Packages for those with
  functional disabilities (Aged and Young)
• Multicultural Innovative Dementia Service Pilot
• Salam Community Respite Cottage Respite
• Extended Aged Care at Home - Dementia (EACHD)
• Lighten Up Program For Healthy Lifestyles
• Womens Survival Skills From Brisbane City
  Council
• Options Plus Program
• Consumer Credit
• Be Wise With Medicine Grants

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• Youth Needs Study
• Literacy Grants
• Muslim Green Pages
• Money Management For Women Seminar from Muslim
  Womens National Network and Office of the
  Status of Women
• Family Issues Research from Brisbane City Council
• Multicultural Flag Project
• Enhancing the Community Capacity of Muslim Women
  - Multicultural Affairs Queensland
• Butterflies in Fresh Fields a compilation of
  stories of the contribution of Muslim Women to
  the history of Queensland

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IWAQ Publications

• The Voice of Muslim Youth
• Care Needs of Muslim Older Adults
• Domestic Violence Shattering the Barrier of
  Silence, A Pathway to Recovery
• Muslim Green Pages
• Arabic/ Islamic Calligraphy
• Butterflies in Fresh Fields

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IWAQ Staff
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Composition

• Female 88
• Male 12
• Refugee 36
• Migrants 58
• Educational Background Professionals in their
  own country, no formal education due to being in
  a refugee camp, Australian education

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Language spoke by Staff
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Our workers consist of

• About 137 care workers and
  administration staff
• Bilingual Personal Care Workers (majority)
• Bilingual Domestic Assistance Workers
• Disability Support Workers
• Registered Nurse
• Bus Drivers
• Coordinators
• Care Coordinators
• Case Workers
• Activities Officers
• Administration staff

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We have

• Workers who are working at another job
• Mothers single (separation due to refugee
  status or other)
• Volunteers who have come as Management Committee
  and later on decided to work

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What we do to help our workers

• Assisting them with Cert. III in Aged Care
  Child Care by getting an educator who has
  experience in teaching NESB people using simple
  language and having language support
• Assisting in getting first aid courses conducted
  in workplace
• Looking for opportunities to up-skill
• Collaborate with other organisations to assist
  workers Job Placements
• Involved in a steering group of Muslim Employment
  set up after identified need

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Opportunities

• Coordinator
• ?
• Care Coordinator
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• Case Workers
• ?
• Personal Care Worker

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• We look at ourselves as giving opportunities/
  training to those who need that experience in
  Australia so they can move to other
  opportunities/jobs/ higher paid employment etc.
  They would have exhausted other possibilities
  because of their appearance, what they wear, not
  wanting to work with certain gender etc and we
  respect that.
• We also look for members in the community who
  have qualifications and have not thought of
  working as a result we now have people who work
  almost full time

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Our aged care service specialty

• We endeavor to match the religious(IWAQ provides
  service to Muslim Non-Muslim alike), cultural
  and linguistic needs, as well as gender of each
  care recipient (where possible). The workers are
  qualified bilingual and bicultural support
  workers from different religious backgrounds, and
  they are provided with ongoing education and
  training.

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What we do

• Incentives On top of the award, we pay
• Travel allowance
• Petrol allowance
• Extra for those doing DA
• Employee of the month
• 15 year celebration acknowledgement of long
  term employees
• Flexibility in hours, location of work
• Use the asset available bi lingual (dont need
  to use interpreters except legal, medical)

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• Involve staff in
• Strategic planning
• Operational Planning
• Staff Team Building

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The diversity in Staff backgrounds has led us to
achieve success and enrichment
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Staff Training
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Thank You!Questions?
Dare to dream